1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to vehicle camera and display systems, and more particularly, to a system for verifying whether an image from a camera on the vehicle was being displayed on a monitor viewable by the driver at the time of a vehicle accident.
2) Description of Related Art
Mirror systems on vehicles protrude from the vehicle and cause significant air resistance with a negative effect on fuel consumption, particularly on large commercial vehicles that utilize large mirror systems. One solution has been the increasing use of cameras for vehicle navigation, which are generally smaller and have therefore less negative effect on vehicle fuel consumption. A problem arises, however, with vehicle camera systems and associated displays/monitors in that they currently do not prove that the monitor inside the vehicle was on and displaying the camera images to the driver in the event of an accident.
Thus, what is needed is a system able to capture images, signals, and other feedback information from the vehicle, vehicle cameras, and displays to definitively state whether a vehicle display was showing a camera image to a driver at the time of a vehicle accident.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a vehicle video display verification system able to capture definitive information from the vehicle systems and display equipment as to the status of images being displayed on a monitor in the vehicle.